Counterbalance arrangement for a vertically movable door



M r 1966 G. c. PEARCE ETAL 3,242,919

COUNTERBALANCE ARRANGEMENT FOR A VERTICALLY MOVABLE DOOR Original Filed March 31, 1960 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 m m 6 N T h 5C E N a PM T 2. um y am u N L E W @iii1%@ llllllll Q W m as A om mm mm. r mm. 3N Mag 0 mm. .5. mfl/yff hf W W fi m2 4 .HW 3. mm om. mm. M emu we. T o 1 7M0- 0.! :09 m2 3: mo. k

March 29, 1966 G. c. PEARCE. ETAL 3,242,919

COUNTERBALANCE ARRANGEMENT FOR A VERTICALLY MOVABLE DOOR Original Filed March 31, 1960 4 Sheets-Sheet 5 as Fig. 3 g 5 Tune Arrozm y March 29, 1966 G. c. PEARCE ETAL 3,242,919

COUNTERBALANCE ARRANGEMENT FOR A VERTICALLY MOVABLE DOOR 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 Original Filed March 31, 1960 fNl/E/YTOES 650266 6. Pan/ea: Jassa Lfm/vs FeA/YA L. M/L awe/v Y Ma. L 980 5. FE Y B W %/F% n- I g 8 2 F I m l fl a THE/e Afro/Ewe) United States Patent 12 Claims. 01. 126191) This is a division of our copending application Ser. No. 221,403, filed August 31, 1962, which a division of our copending applicationSer. No. 19,081, filed March 31, 1960, now Patent No. 3,157,175 granted November 17, 1964.

This invention relates to a domestic appliance and more particularly to a counterbalance arrangement for a vertically liftable door on a cooking range.

The trend toward built-in appliance has caused much of the range industry to divide the integral free-standing range into its components and to market these components separately. This trend has separated the cooking top from the oven. But it is well known that manufacturing and installation economies can be effected by combining the various cooking operations into a single unit. Therefore it is to the incorporation of built-in features in an integral free-standing range that the present invention is directed. Accordingly, it is an object of this invention to provide a thirty-inch built-in countertop range having an oven disposed above a slidably removable burner or cooking top drawer.

It is also an object of this invention to provide an oven of the above type with a. vertically liftable door having a compact counterbalancing system.

Another object of this invention is to provide ventilation means for the control compartment above the oven.

Further objects and advantages of the present invention will be apparent from the following description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings wherein preferred embodiments of the present invention are clear- 1y shown.

In the drawings:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of the built-in range of this invention showing the burner drawer in its partially removed or half-out position;

FIGURE 2 is a sectional view taken along line 22 in FIGURE 3;

FIGURE 3 is a fragmentary sectional view with parts broken away taken generally along the line 3-3 in FIG- URE 2 with the oven door in closed position; and

FIGURE 4 is a fragmentary sectional view with parts broken away taken along the line 33 in FIGURE 2 with the oven door in open and broil position.

In accordance with this invention and with reference to FIGURE 1, an integral countertop range is shown. The range 10 is adapted to be built-in to a line of base cabinets 12 having a countertop 14 which abuts tight against the range and to set on a matching base cabinet 15 which may be used for storing cooking utensils. If desired, the range may be fastened to and supported by a building wall at the proper heighth. Generally, the

range 10 includes a casing 16 having sidewalls 34, 35 defining a controls section or compartment 18, an oven liner compartment 20 and a burner section or cooking unit compartment 22. The front of the oven compartment is closed by an oven door assembly 24 having a handle 26 which aids the user in lifting the door to its fully open position (shown in FIGURE 4) to expose an oven 28. With the door 24 in its raised position it should be apparent that the interior of the oven is completely and easily accessible for cleaning. I

The oven 28 is generally not as deep from front to back as are the ovens in conventional floor mounted freestanding ranges. For this reason the spit of an automatic rotisserie (not shown) may be placed diagonally horizontally within the oven 28. One end of the spit may have alfixed thereto an angular or bevel gear which is driven by a bevel driving gear extending through a wall in one of the rear corners of the oven. The rotisserie motor may be disposed above in the control compartment 18 and connected with the driving gear by means of a roller chain to the rear of the oven liner. The rotisserie construction described is not shown as it is believed well within the skill of the art to embody these teachings into an oven of the type taught in this invention.

The cooking unit or burner compartment 22 is define by sidewalls 34 and 35 of the casing 16 which include frontwardly extending cheek plate portions 36, 37 to form the frontwar-d limits of the burner or cooking unit compartment 22. Within the compartment 22 a burner drawer shown generally at 38 is disposed having a slightly recessed top surface 40 on which a pair of front burners 42, 43 and a pair of rear burners 44, 45 are disposed. A cover shown generally at 46 and having a vertical front wall 47 is movably interconnected with the burner drawer 38 such that the burners or cooking units 42, 43, 44 and 45 are concealed when the drawer 38 is slidably positioned completely within the cooking unit compartment 22. A latch means includes an actuating knob 48 on the front wall 50 of the burner drawer 38 which may be actuated to remove a detent so that the drawer 38 may be moved to its half out position shown in FIGURE 1, its fully out position, and its fully in or stored position. It should be noted that the latch arrangement of this invention positively locks the drawer in each of its positions so that the drawer cannot be inadvertently moved while in operation.

Drip trays 52 may be slidably positioned in the bottom of the burner drawer 33 such that drippings which spill through the cooking unit openings will fall on the drip trays. The drip trays are easily removable for cleaning.

The controls for the surface cooking units 42, 43, 44 and 45 are shown at 54 but it should be recognized that the controls 54 may be positioned on the top surface 40 of the burner drawer 38 or on a front panel 122 of the controls compartment, such as the control knob 56 for the oven heating element 57. For convenience and utility a lamp housing 58 (FIGURE 3) is disposed between the controls compartment 18 and the oven compartment 20, the lamp 59 therein shedding light through upper and lower transparent panels both on the control panel and the burner drawer 38.

The construction of the oven door 24 will now be explained. Each control arm such as is relatively pivot- .ally positioned on a bushing such as 92 which is securely fastened as by welding to the door support channel 86;

In order to preclude any rubbing or scraping noise the control arms may be coated with an elastomeric product such as nylon. By concealing the support arrangement when the door is closed, the overall appearance of the product is enhanced. It should of course be recognized that the support arrangement is identical for both sides of the oven door 24. The foregoing explanation for the right-hand side of the door will suffice for the support arrangement on the left-hand side. Note also that the oven of this invention could be provided with a glass or transparent panel door of the type taught in our copending application'Serial No. 19,082 filed March 31, 1960, now Patent No. 3,157,176 granted November 17, 1964.

The counterbalancing arrangement and support for the oven door 24 will now be more fully explained. With reference to FIGURE 4, the door 24 is shown supported on its right side by an upper control arm 90 and a lower control arm 94. Similarly, on the. left-hand side of the door, an upper control arm is pivotally supported at its outer end to the door 24 while a lower control arm is likewise pivotally connected to the oven door. With reference to FIGURE 3, the casing 16 is shown with a portion of its sidewall 35 broken away to expose an insulation retainer 104 adjacent which the lower control arm 94 is pivotally attached to a pin 106 on a control arm adjusting bracket or metal strip 108 which extends from the control compartment through a slot 105 in a partition 114 into the space between the insulation retainer 104 and the casing side wall 35. Within the control compartment on the adjusting strip 108 is pivotally fastened at 110 to a control housing sidewall 111 (107 on the left side of the range) upstanding from and integral with the partition 114 which separates the control and oven compartments. Lower control arm adjustment is made possible by a set screw 112 in the sidewall 111, 107 operating in a slot 113 in the adjusting strip. This permits the inner door panel of the door 24 to be positioned in a coplanar relationship with the front of the oven in order to effect proper sealing of the oven liner 28. The insulation retainer 104 extends horizontally inwardly beneath the control compartment to define a retainer wall portion 116 spaced from the oven forming liner 118, thereby to retain therebetween any conventional insulation, such as 120. The partition 114 forms the bottom wall of a generally open top box-like structure which defines in part the controls compartment. An integral turned up flange portion 122 at the front of the partition 114 supports the range control, such as 123. Aflixed to the partition 114 and upstanding therefrom is a right-hand upper control arm pivot support bracket 124 which includes a transverse shaft 126 for rotatably mounting a cable support portion or changing moment arm extension or crank arm portion 128 on the end of the control arm 90. A right-hand cable or flexible bond 130 is connected by a U-shaped anchor bracket 132 to the outer extremity of the changing moment arm extension 128. In similar fashion the left-hand side of the oven door 24 is supported and counterbalanced by a left-hand control arm support bracket 125 for journalling the opposite end of shaft 126. A moment arm extension 129 on the control arm 100 grips a second cable 131 extending toward the counterbalance mechanism. Thus, as the door 24 is moved vertically upwardly to its open position seen in solid lines in FIGURE 5, the distance between the pivot shaft 126 and the flexible bonds 130, 131 is continuously changed. This changing moment arm in conjunction with a pivotable spring support assembly 136 effects the counterbalancing arrangement of this invention as will be more fully described next following.

The spring support assembly 136 includes a laterally elongated U-shaped support member 138 having a righthand flexible bond support pulley 140 and a left-hand flexible bond support pulley 142. A pair of springs are carried by the support member 138 and includes a righthand door support spring 144 and a left-hand door support spring 146, The springs are afiixed at one end to the flexible door support bond and the other end to the support member 138. The spring support member 138 is pivotally mounted at 148 and 149 to brackets 150, 152 afiixed to the upstanding sidewalls 111, 107, respectively, of the control housing partition 114. Note that the spring support member 138, during counterbalancing, pivots to maintain the pulleys and 142 coplanar with the cables or flexible bonds 130, 131. It is within the purview of this invention .to utilize compression springs instead of the tensioning springs 144 and 146. It has been found that compression springs, in which the control arm cables extend through the center of the spring for attachment at the opposite end thereof, facilitate a more compact counterbalancing arrangement. In other words the width of the support member 138 can be reduced to make the counterbalancing arrangement more adaptable to a smaller oven door such as is used in our aforementioned copending application Serial No. 19,082. Thus it is within the contemplation of this invention to use a counterbalancing support spring assembly which will use a pair of compression springs suitably guided in sleeves to prevent lateral deflection of the compressing springs as the oven door is closed.

An automatic oven light is also operated by the control arm shaft 126. A terminal block 155 is mounted on the control housing partition 114 and extends into the oven liner to receive a light bulb (not shown). In conjunction therewith an oven light switch 157 includes an actuator button 159 which is engaged by a tab 153 secured to the shaft 126 and pivoted thereby to energize the light whenever the oven door 24 is opened.

Ventilation for the range 10 is divided into three parts, the control compartment, the oven and the burner drawer compartment. In the control compartment 18 (FIG- URES 2, 3 and 4) openings 279 are formed in a casing rear wall or rear insulation retainer panel 282. At the front of the controls compartment a removable casing top panel 284 is spaced from the upstanding flange 122 by a plurality of cup-like spacers 283. Ventilation, as shown by air flow arrows in FIGURES 3 and 4, is effective to maintain the control compartment at suitable temperatures. Note also .that air spaces are formed between the casing sides 34, 35 and the insulation retainer sidewalls 104a, 104b, respectively. which extend from the inwardly turned top flanges of the pan at the bottom of the range to the control compartment 18, and which are connected to the control housing by way of the control arm slots 105 and 290 at each side of the control compartment. Draft inducing vent openings 179 interconnect the burner compartment 22 wit-h these air spaces and this upsweep of cooling air along the sides of the oven liner maintains the exterior of the range suitably cool.

Lastly, the burner drawer 38 is ventilated by side vents 296 (FIGURE 1) which communicate with the burner compartment 22 and from there to the air spaces extending vertically between the casing sidewalls and the insulation retainer.

It should now be seen that an improved integral builtin range has been provided which includes both baking facilities and surface cooking facilities. A space saving lift-type door of novel construction is provided with an unlatching device which allows the door to be flipped over for easy cleaning.

The foregoing construction is believed to set forth a new concept in modular range design. The oven liner compartment 28 is fastened to the burner drawer cornpartment solely by screws 299 extending from the bottom wall of the insulation retainer 104 into the inwardly turned top flanges of the reinforcement pan 180. The control compartment 18 mounts to the top of the oven liner compartment and extends sidewardly over the top edge of the insulation retainer to receive the oven door support arms. Thus a complete range is assembled simply by attaching the casing side panels 34 and 3510 the stacked assembly of burner drawer, 'oven' and control compartment. By separating the oven and control compartment from the burner drawer as by screws 25'9 and eliminating the side panels 34 and 35, the subcombinations then become, with minor decorative panel adaptations, a complete wall oven and a complete cooking top suitable for separate built-in installation.

While the embodiment of the present invention as herein disclosed constitutes a preferred form, it is to be understood that other forms might be adopted.

What is claimed is as follows:

1. A counterbalance arrangement for a door moving only generally vertically relative to a compartment and in front thereof and comprising, control arm means for supporting said door and having a first member, means adapted to be located in said compartment for pivotally mounting said control arm means and said first member, a second member having a portion in coplanar relationship to said first member, means to pivot said portion in the same plane as said first member, means interconnecting said members to provide a first relationship for positioning said door in a first position and to provide a second relationship for positioning said door in a second position, said interconnecting means inlcuding yieldable means having one end fixed at a fixed distance from the point of pivot of said second member and another end fastened to said first member to pull :said first member in a manner for retaining said door in a third position, another control arm means separate from the first named control arm means for supporting said door at a point spaced from the point at which said first named control arm means supports said door, said another control arm means configured to nest with said first named control arm means when said door is in one of said positions, and means spaced from said means for pivotally mounting the first named control arm means for pivotally mounting said another control arm means.

2. A counterbalance arrangement for a door moving only generally vertically relative to a compartment and in front thereof and comprising, control arm means for supporting said door and having a door positioning portion, means adapted to be located in fixed relation to said compartment for pivotally mounting said control arm means and said door positioning portion, a support portion in coplanar relationship to said door positioning portion, means to facilitate the pivoting of said support portion in the same plane as said door positioning portion, means interconnecting said portions to provide a first relationship when said door is in a first position and a second relationship different from said first relationship when said door is in a second position, and another control arm means separate from the first named control arm means for supporting said door at a point spaced from the point at which said first named control arm means supports said door, said another control arm means configured to nest with said first named control arm means when said door is in one of said positions, means spaced from said means for pivotally mounting the first named control arm means for pivotally mounting said another control arm means, said interconnecting means including yieldable means having one end fixed at a predetermined distance from the point of pivot of said support portion and another end fastened to said door positioning portion to actuate said door positioning portion when said door is moving between said positions.

3. A counterbalance arrangement for a door moving only generally vertically relative to a compartment and in front thereof and comprising, control arm means for supporting said door and having a door positioning portion, means adapted to be located in fixed relation to said compartment for pivotally mounting said control arm means and said door positioning portion, means adapted to arcuately pivot about a point fixed relative to said compantment and having a support portion in coplanar relationship to said door positioning portion, said support portion having a first relationship to said door positioning portion for positioning said door in a first position and a second relationship to said door positioning portion different from said first relationship for positioning said door in a second position, yieldable means adapted to have one end a fixed distance from the point of pivot of said support portion and another end fastened to said door positioning portion to pull said door positioning portion in a manner for moving said door between said positions, another control arm means for supporting said door at a point spaced from the point at which said first named control arm means supports said door, and means adjustably locatable in relation to said compartment for pivotally mounting said other control arm means.

4. A counterbalance arrangement for a door moving only generally vertically relative to a compartment and in front thereof and comprising, control arm means for supporting said door and having a door positioning portion, means adapted to be located in fixed relation to said compartment for pivotally mounting said control arm means and said door positioning portion, means adapted to arcuately pivot about a point fixed relative to said compartment and having a support portion in coplanar relationship to said door positioning portion, said support portion having a first relationship to said door positioning portion for positioning said door in a first position and a second relationship to said door positioning portion difierent from said first relationship for positioning said door in a second position, and yieldable means adapted to have one end a fixed distance from the point of pivot of said support portion and another end fastened to said door positioning portion to pull said door positioning portion in a manner for moving said door between said positions, said control arm means pivotally mounted for movement alongside said compartment and having an elastomeric coating thereon for precluding any rubbing or scraping noise due to engagement thereof with said compartment.

5. A counterbalance arrangement for a door moving only generally vertically relative to a compartment and in front thereof and comprising, control arm means for supporting said door and having a door positioning portion, means adapted to be located in fixed relation to said compartment for pivotally mounting said control arm means and said door positioning portion, means having a support portion in coplanar relationship to said door positioning portion, means to pivot said support portion in the same plane as said door positioning portion, means interconnecting said portions to provide a first relationship when said door is in a first position and to provide a second relationship different from said first relationship when said door is in a second position, said interconnecting means including yieldable means having one end fastened at a fixed distance from the point of pivot of said support portion and another end fastened to said door positioning portion to actuate said door positioning portion in a manner for moving said door between said positions, and another control arm means separate from the first named control arm means for supporting said door at a point spaced from the point at which said first named control arm means supports said door.

6. The counterbalance arrangement of claim 3 wherein both control arm means include portions which are substantially coplanar.

7. The counterbalance arrangement of claim 2 wherein one of said portions moves toward the other of said portions as said door moves between said positions.

8. The counterbalance arrangement of claim 2 wherein said yieldable means includes a coil spring and said means for pivotally mounting said first named control arm means includes a shaft extending parallel to said door.

3,242,919 7 8 9. The counterbalance arrangement of claim 2 wherein References Cited by the Examiner both of said control arm means have a generally C-shape. UNITED STATES PATENTS 10. The counterbalance arrangement of claim 3 wherein the means for pivotally mounting said other coniii! trol arm means is alongside said compartment and be- 5 em hind the means for pivotally mountin said first name-d 1954182 4/1934 Rasmussen 126*191 2,313,506 3/1943 Berg 12619l arm means- 1 2,483,968 10/1949 Ecklund 12639 X 11. The counterbalance arrangement of claim 10 2,979053 2/1961 crispen et a1 126 194 whereln both said control arm means have generally C- shaped portions nesting together when said door is in one 10 FOREIGN PATENTS of said positions. 686,472 4/ 1930 France.

12. The counterbalance arrangement of claim 2 e wherein one of said control arm means includes means for KENNETH SPRAGUE, P r y Examineractuating a switch. 15 FREDERICK L. MATTESON, JR, Examiner. 

1. A COUNTERBALANCE ARRANGEMENT FOR A DOOR MOVING ONLY GENERALLY VERTICALLY RELATIVE TO A COMPARTMENT AND IN FRONT THEREOF AND COMPRISING, CONTROL ARM MEANS FOR SUPPORTING SAID DOOR AND HAVING A FIRST MEMBER, MEANS ADAPTED TO BE LOCATED IN SAID COMPARTMENT FOR PIVOTALLY MOUNTING SAID CONTROL ARM MEANS AND SAID FIRST MEMBER, A SECOND MEMBER HAVING A PORTION IN COPLANAR RELATIONSHIP TO SAID FIRST MEMBER, MEANS TO PIVOT SAID PORTION IN THE SAME PLANE AS SAID FIRST MEMBER, MEANS INTERCONNECTING SAID MEMBERS TO PROVIDE A FIRST RELATIONSHIP FOR POSITIONING SAID DOOR IN A FIRST POSITION AND TO PROVIDE A SECOND RELATIONSHIP FOR POSITIONING SAID DOOR IN A SECOND POSITION, SAID INTERCONNECTING MEANS INCLUDING YIELDABLE MEANS HAVING ONE END FIXED AT A FIXED DISTANCE FROM THE POINT OF PIVOT OF SAID SECOND MEMBER AND ANOTHER END FASTENED TO SAID FIRST MEMBER TO PULL SAID FIRST MEMBER IN A MANNER FOR RETAINING SAID DOOR IN A THIRD POSITION, ANOTHER CONTROL ARM MEANS SEPARATE FORM THE FIRST NAMED CONTROL ARM MEANS FOR SUPPORTING SAID DOOR AT A POINT SPACED FROM THE POINT AT WHICH SAID FIRST NAMED CONTROL ARM MEANS SUPPORTS SAID DOOR, SAID ANOTHER CONTROL ARM MEANS CONFIGURED TO NEST WITH SAID FIRST NAMED CONTROL ARM MEANS WHEN SAID DOOR IS IN ONE OF SAID POSITIONS, AND MEANS SPACED FROM SAID MEANS FOR PIVOTALLY MOUNTING THE FIRST NAMED CONTROL ARM MEANS FOR PIVOTALLY MOUNTING SAID ANOTHER CONTROL ARM MEANS. 